Author: wandasknottythoughts@gmail.com

Not part of the plan

There I was, trying out another idea of where I wanted to go with this doily when I noticed something didn’t look quite right.  It wasn’t laying flat like it should have. What was going on?

Something's wrong with What's next doily on wandasknottythoughts
Something’s wrong

Then I saw it! I’d skipped a chain and joined in the wrong spot!

Mistake found! on What's next doily on wandasknottythoughts
Mistake found!

Ahhhh! Look how far I had gone before I noticed!

Bummer!

Now the question “what comes next?” is “to cut it off” or “un-tat it”? Either way, it put a damper on my enthusiasm.

After debating about it for a while (several days, in fact) I decided to undo it to keep from having more ends to hide. Great idea, but I have broken the thread several times now, so I’ll still have ends to hide.  Bummer!

Other than this, I haven’t done much tatting lately; instead, I’ve been potting flowers. I’ve done more this year that I ever have, but I have more spaces to put them since we’ve done work on the house.  I got a bit adventurous about it, too.

Tower of Flowers on wandasknottythoughts
Tower of Flowers

I have had this rod for almost 10 years and never tried to use it. The rod is formed with legs at the bottom to fit inside the large pot at the bottom, then goes straight up to hold the other pots. I put a couple of bricks and a large rock in the big pot to weigh it down. I couldn’t find quite the right size pots for the rest, but this time I wasn’t going to let that keep me from using it!  Some of the pots are a little light on flowers, but that is easily remedied. I even painted the pots!

Nice thought, huh? It lasted about a week.

Tower of Flowers fell down on wandasknottythoughts
Tower of Flowers fell down

Then a cold front came through with a bit of wind. The tower was suddenly much shorter, looking more like a sad motel that has seen better days rather than a lofty, new tower. The top four pots broke. 🙁   I was able to rescue the flowers and re-pot them. They are currently perking up in their new home, a single story group home instead of high-rise apartments.

As the temperatures outside soar, I will probably be doing more tatting and less working with flowers outside. I can enjoy the view of flowers while I enjoy relaxing and tatting, maybe inside in the airconditioning, maybe outside if there is shade and a breeze.

“You have to take risks. We will only understand the miracle of life fully when we allow the unexpected to happen. ” Paulo Coelho
https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/unexpected

What’s Next?

I have to admit, I haven’t picked up a shuttle to tat for over a week. I’ve moved a few shuttles and projects around but to move them not do anything else. I’ve been working on yard projects instead.

One of the projects that I moved around – several times – is this doily.

What should I do next? tatted doily on wandasknottythoughts
What should I do next?

I started this in Lizbeth #620 Azalea Medium size 20 with something completely different in mind. It wasn’t even supposed to be a doily! The counts have changed mid-round in several places causing one side to be not quite curved the same as the rest.  This is obviously going to be for me (even if no-one else can see the changes/mistakes). I like what I have so far but, as is it this far, I want to do more.  Not sure what that is going to be yet.

What's next tatted doily and teacup plant on wandasknottythoughts
What’s next doily and teacup plant

While at the local grocery store just before Mother’s Day I found this potted plant in a tea-cup which drew my eye immediately. I like the design and the plants.

Maybe this doily will sit under it when I’m done.  Whenever I figure out what it will take to finish it.

“Your mind will answer most questions if you learn to relax and wait for the answer.”      William S. Burroughs              brainyquote.com

The Busy Month of May

May is jam-packed with events and special days, with several birthdays, graduations, and programs, as well as Mother’s Day.  Just signing cards takes a lengthy amount of time. Especially when I have to add tatting to each and every one 🙂

One of the graduates mentioned the Easter Cross I made would look good as a bookmark. Who am I to argue?

Easter Cross made as a bookmark on wandasknottythoughts
Easter Cross made as a bookmark

I have noticed that purple is a favorite color, so I made one in Lizbeth #641, Lilac Dark, in size 20. Other than a bit of trouble closing the large Self-Closing Mock Ring at the bottom it came out well. The recipient loved it!

Graduates card and Easter Cross as a bookmark on wandasknottythoughts
Graduates card and Easter Cross as a bookmark

I’m very proud of my daughter for graduating college!

We have also attended a play, a concert, a soccer game, and a birthday lunch in the last twelve days. Considering both my husband and I work full time with a lot of overtime, we have been kept exceedingly busy. And May is not over yet!

I still have a couple of graduation gifts to finish. Both graduates live some distance away so cards will have to be mailed. Isn’t it great that tatting can fit so nicely inside cards?

“too busy” is a myth. People make time for things that are really important to them.” Mandy Hale   The Awesome Quotes

Tatting when you don’t know what to make

What to tat, what to tat?

Yes, I have a list of things I’ve thought about tatting, several things I’ve contemplated making. This week none of them sounded appealing to start, though I wanted to tat. But tat what and in what color? Maybe something simple that is easy to carry around. Edgings can be simple, which sounded like a nice project. But to put on what?

I have a couple of these little yogurt glass jars. A friend of mine introduced me to the yogurt that comes in these, and like her feel that they could/should be used in some way. I guess now would be a good time to do something with one.

Tatted edging around yogurt jar on wandasknottythoughts
Tatted edging around yogurt jar

I have quite a bit of thread but usually end up using the same colors over and over instead of looking through my stash for anything else. This blue that I used, Lizbeth #652 Royal Blue, is no different – it was handy.

With this simple pattern, I only needed to do two things: decide how long the chains should be and how many repeats to go around the jar.

I happily tatted about half of the edging while at home with my feet up, enjoying listening to music. The next day I took it with me to tat while waiting for the oil to be changed in my car. I was pretty sure I’d finish it while there but I needed to make sure it was the right length.

So I took the jar with me. Yes, I have that kind of purse, one with plenty of room to carry this jar.

Yogurt jars with and without tatting on wandasknottythoughts
Yogurt jars with and without tatting

See how pretty the jar is with tatting? Okay, tatting makes almost everything pretty. But it changes the plain container into a lovely candy dish.

I have several more of these jars. Maybe I should make a set. I suppose they would make nice gifts, too. Especially with some lovely colored chocolate covered candies inside, right?

“I think people always want candy, whether you’re a kid or an adult.”
Dylan Lauren
Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/dylan_lauren_779204

Disclaimer: The jars are from Yoplait French Style Yogurt “oui”. I have not received any type of compensation for mentioning it.

DVD Appreciation Day

Do you know about DVD Appreciation Day?

What is that you say? Da Vinci Disorder Awareness Day.

Why would anyone have an appreciation day for a disorder?

According to Craftree member wodentoad:

“For those who don’t know, DVD awareness day is a wholly made up “disorder” which celebrates Leonardo Da Vinci who was a true Renaissance man. He spoke several languages, painted, invented many things in many different disciplines, learned about medicine, and even music composition. He was also a man who rarely finished work because like most men of the time he believed that the learning and designing was “gentleman’s work” while the actual finishing of projects was for laborers.”

Doesn’t this sound like crafters who start projects in any variety of mediums, all excited about the enterprise, but get distracted before it’s done and move on to another fun and exciting crafting adventure? Well, it sounds like me.

DVD Appreciation Day is celebrated on April 15, Da Vinci’s birthday. This year it was on a Sunday, a Sunday I didn’t even have to work! I was able to do some tatting, mostly emptying thread from some of my shuttles.

Weekend tatting results on wandasknottythoughts
Weekend tatting results

I made the small four ring crosses with the idea of making earrings. After I had done a few I started thinking how to put them together.  I started an experiment to find out. It came together very well.

Believe it or not, I finished my little experiment Monday.

Ring of crosses Results of weekend tatting on wandasknottythoughts
Results of weekend tatting

I say finished, but is it? What do I do with this little ring? Put it on material for a coaster? Fill in the center, add to the outside?

Maybe I’ll finish it by the next DVD Awareness Day.

Craftree.com is a craft forum for the fiber arts. Membership is free, you just have to create an account.

“Art is never finished, only abandoned. Leonardo da Vinci” 
brainyquote.com

Washcloth Bunnies

I didn’t realize how hard it was to find small stuffed toys for my niece and nephews for Easter. So many of the cute little things that are obviously made for small children have tags that specify they are not for children under 3. Really?! The ones that are made for children that young are usually more expensive, too. So I started looking for alternatives.

While at the store I remembered seeing animals made from folded towels and wash clothes, so I opened Pinterest on my phone to see what I could find.

Three Wash Cloth bunnies for Easter on wandasknottythoughts
Three Wash Cloth bunnies for Easter

There are a lot of variations on folded animals out there on the Internet. I found this version which only needs a washcloth and a rubber band. I didn’t add anything extra, like eyes or tails or neck ribbons, which would have been cute, I  kept it very simple.

I chose three different colors for the bunnies: blue for the oldest boy (about 5), pink for his little sister (most 3 year-old girls like pink at least a little bit), and aqua/teal for this littlest (less than 1-year-old). My thought is they are cute as a gift but are useful. They don’t have to be just one more cute little fuzzy toy to be played with for a short time and then forgotten. And if they want the bunnies back they are simple enough to remake.

Wash Cloth bunnies for Easter on wandasknottythoughts
Two Wash Cloth bunnies for Easter

I was a bit disappointed that I didn’t see the kids get them. Several family members were under the weather including the kid’s grandma and mom. I sent them the bunnies and a few other Easter basket goodies home anyway. Their mom texted me thanks and that they liked the bunnies.

Though we missed a few of the family and had to change the venue (from my sister-in-law’s house to ours) Easter was a wonderful day. It was cold outside but my grandkids insisted they wanted an egg hunt. We didn’t hide them very well but they got to go out and look for them. They also got to go to the neighbor’s place and see the baby chicks. That was a high light of the day. We were so blessed to have as many come as we did.

The tatting the bunnies are sitting on is a piece I started maybe 15 years ago. I got almost done with this part and decided I didn’t like it for table clothe I was wanting to make. The pink bunny is hiding the unfinished edge where I ran out of thread and never went back to finish. With a little strategic planning, it is still pretty enough to use.

“Having someone to love is Family
Having somewhere to go is Home
Having both is a Blessing”
quotesgram.com

Another Simple Easter Cross

I’ve made another Simple Easter Cross with a slight modification. I put a finding in the middle instead of making a ring. I used Lizbeth #187 Green Ice in size 20 for this one.

Simple Easter Cross with a finding in the center on wandasknottythoughts
Simple Easter Cross with a finding in the center

The finding in the center is a bit larger than the tatted ring so there are a few stitch count changes. There was a bit of trial and error to get the right dimensions, which I expected. If you happen to be using thread already on the shuttles that are not wound continuously this is much easier. The large Self-Closing Mock Ring (SCMR) at the bottom can be a bit of a pain, but certainly better than a regular ring!

It came out well. After a few issues!

This isn’t harder than the cross with the tatted ring center. It’s almost exactly the same, you just start with the rings attaching to the center instead of making one and climbing out. But it helps to pay attention to what you are doing. Things go much better that way.

I started this several times. I retro tatted several times because of mistakes, and several times found that I hadn’t made a mistake after all. I also cut it off once or twice because I did make mistakes. I didn’t have this much trouble with the original in the several times I made it.

I like how quickly this tats up – when paying attention! I plan to put ends on the several I’ve made to make them bookmarks. They will be wonderful to have for gifts to be put in cards, for sympathy or congratulations.

I’ve added the pattern for the Simple Easter Cross on my patterns page. This is for the tatted center, not the finding. To use a finding for the center the SCMRs need a few extra stitches.

“Determination will get you through this.” From a fortune cookie.

Happy Easter!

Simple cross for Easter on wandasknottythoughts
Simple cross

I hope you all have had a wonderful and blessed Easter.

This year Easter and International Tatting Day happen to fall on the same day. Which made it a very full day! Church in the morning, big family dinner and visiting in the afternoon, then finally a chance to sit down and tat.

I was trying to make a cross that was quick but simple to tat. I also was trying not to spend too much time on the Internet, which is extremely easy to do. So I fiddled around a bit and came up with this one. It’s made in Lizbeth #620 Azalea Medium size 20.

Now that I have time to put my feet up I’m making a couple more but with findings in the center. I think I can use the same stitch count as I did for this one. We’ll see.

I’m also working on a doily that is currently pinned out. I need it to be flat so I can decide what the next round will look like. It has been quite an interesting project so far. I’ll be sharing it later.

Now, I’m going to get me a warm drink – it’s pretty chilly today – put my feet up and tat. And have some chocolate!

“If you do what you love, it is the best way to relax.” Christian Louboutin                 www.brainyquote.com

 

Panya Ice Drop

What do you do when you have leftover thread on your shuttles? You find something small to make with it of course. I thought an ice drop would fit the bill to use up some of my remnant threads.

Panya Ice Drop on wandasknottythoughts 2018
Panya Ice Drop

I still had Lizbeth #638 Christmas Green and #671 Christmas Red size 20 on a couple of shuttles, so those are what I worked with. I started with the idea of the basic ice drop pattern with a few minor adjustments, then added the outside round. The center is a blue glass gem from The Dollar Store.

I don’t recall seeing this particular pattern before so I named it. If I am incorrect I’ll acknowledge the author and update this.

Ice drops are fun to make and usually don’t use much thread. Once you know how to make the basic ice drop you can enjoy creating so many different variations to fashion each one a little different. Or make the same one over and over and still have fun tatting them. There isn’t much to limit your ice drop creation.  Except maybe the length of your thread and how many centerpieces you have.

“Imagination is the highest kite one can fly.” Lauren Bacall               brainyquote.com

 

Out of the habit

It has been a while since I last posted, mostly because I haven’t been tatting a lot lately. I kind of got out of the habit. We were very busy for a while, then I got sick and had no interest in doing anything, then I found other things to do. This didn’t mean I didn’t think about tatting, I just didn’t do very much of it.

Happily, I’ve gotten my tatting groove back! I even made a few things for St. Patrick’s Day.

St. Patrick's Day Penny Ice Drops on wandasknottythoughts 2018
St. Patrick’s Day Penny Ice Drops

I made these four Ice Drops with penny centers to send to one of my daughters. I think you could say these are made with the basic Ice Drop pattern found on the Ice Drop Addicts Facebook page. I didn’t actually follow it, but I’ve made it before. I did adjust counts to accommodate the pennies, but there is a pattern for that, too.

Because I didn’t refer to the patterns I made a few – let’s say, minor adjustments, that I didn’t think through very well. It still worked, just came out a little different than expected.

Two St. Patrick's Day Penny Ice Drops on wandasknottythoughts 2018
Two St. Patrick’s Day Penny Ice Drops

The Ice Drop on the left was the first one. I miscalculated when I put the penny in, putting Lincoln’s head in the wrong location (I thought it would look funny with him looking down instead of out).  I made the hanger long and joined it so Lincoln would sit correctly. Then I noticed the chains didn’t sit quite right, either. Do you see it?

I made a couple Ice Drops with the chains the same way before I figured out what was going on with them.  After that, I ordered them the other way.

I mailed four pins to my oldest daughter to get them to her before St. Patrick’s Day. We were visiting our other daughter on the Friday before, so hers I hand delivered. Because of another project I was working on – non-tatting related – I didn’t have all of them tatted by the time we left. Guess what I was doing on the trip up there? I made sure to take the beads and pins with me so I could finish them up before they were handed out.

I needed four pins for my other daughter but forgot to make one for me. So I finished that one on Saturday afternoon and promptly gave it away as well. The pins were a big hit.

I’m glad I’ve finally gotten back into the habit of tatting.

“Positivity is like a muscle: keep exercising it, and it becomes a habit.” Natialie Massenet    https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/natalie_massenet_653263